Flexible and expansible pipe-coupling.



' PATENTED OCT. 25, 1904.

FLEXIBLE AND EXPANSIBLE PIPE COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED IAE 29,1900. RENEWED MAR-17. 1904.

N0 MODEL.

UNITE STATES Patented October 25, 1904.

PAT NT OFFICE.

JAMES C. BAYLES, OF EAST ORANGE, NEW JERSEY.

FLEXIBLE AND EXPANSIBLE PIPE-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 773,046, dated October25,1904. 7 Application filed March 29, 1900. Renewed March 1'7, 1904.Serial No. 198,662. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES C. BAYLEs, a citizen of the United States,residing at East Orange, county of Essex, State of New Jersey, haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in Flexible and ExpansiblePipe- Oouplings, of which the following is a specification, referencebeing had to the drawing accompanying and forming a part of the same.

The invention relates generally tomechanism for flexibly and expansiblyconnecting sections of pipe.

The object of my invention is to provide a flexible expansion-couplingfor pipes which are rigid in themselves and which by reason of changesof temperature, unequal settling, and

other natural or accidental causes are subject to movements tending tofracture rigidpipelines or cause them to separate at the joints.

The invention consists generally of means for flexibly and expansiblyconnecting the ends of juxtaposed sections of pipe and maintainingunconstricted passage between such sections, whether in a straight ordeviating line, and for making repair-fittings of the characterhereinafter described. These means comprise a preferably cylindricalsection of flexibleimaterial, such as a ductile metal, and devices suchas are hereinafter described for tightly connecting the ends of theductile section to the ends of the rigid pipe-sections.

I am aware that heretofore flexible coupling-sections of various shapesand materials to accommodate movement in pipe-lines have been used andpatentedas, for example, in United States Letters Patent No. 582,57 5,dated May 11, 1897, issued to James C. Bayles; but I believe that themeans I shall hereinafter describe and claim for connecting the flexiblesection to the rigid pipe-sections are new with meand accomplish resultsnot contemplated in or attainable by devices heretofore in use ordescribed in any patent. It

will be noted that the use of the bead or rib on the outer circumferenceof the pipe and of the beveled driving-ring encircling the pipe, whichare th'eessence of the'inventionset forth in said Letters Patent No.582,575, necessitates making'the sleeve of a readily-comvmeansas lead,for exampleis too soft and ductile to be employed as an element of acoupling for lines carrying gases or fluids under high pressure. In mypresent invention I do not deform the ends of the flexible section bycompressing, but hold them firmly between flat surfaces in a positionsubstantially'perpendicular to the axis of the pipe, as will behereinafter described. material of comparatively little compressibility,such as copper or even soft steel, may therefore be used for thecoupling-section.

The accompanying drawing is a side view ofa repair-fitting embodying myinvention, the upper part'being cut away and shown in section.

A represents a section of pipe having a flange A at or near the end towhich the flexiblecoupling is to be attached. A is a hub of ordinaryconstruction. It should be understood, however, that the free ends ofthe rigid pipes may be of any desired construction. B is another sectionof pipe having a flange B corresponding to the flange A and having asimilar hub B The flanges may be of any suitable form and may beintegrally connected with the pipes or attached in any other suitablemanner. Instead of continuous flanges surrounding the ends of the rigidpipes a series of separate flanges, lugs, or shoulders suitably attachedto the-pipes or even a suitably-thickened end of the rigid pipe may beused to perform the same functionvia of providing fixed bearings for thebolts or other means employed to draw the followers toward the ends ofthe pipes, as hereinafter described. The term flange as hereinafter usedin this connection should therefore be understood as covering any suchsuitable'modifica tion thereof. The outer edges of the flanges A and Bmaybe provided with shoulders a and b for the purpose hereinafterstated.

C and C are follower-rings having faces approximately conforming incontour to the Flexible faces of the flanges A and B, respectively, andhaving their inner corners preferably slightly rounded. The followers Cand C are adapted to be held in position opposite the faces of theflanges A and B, respectively, by bolts 0 c, passing through thefollowers and the flanges.

D is the flexible section of the coupling, (preferably having aprotruding middle zone, as at D,)the ends of which said section areflanged, so that when in use the flanged ends of the flexible section'Dcome between the followers 0 and C and the ends of the pipes A and B andthe flanges A and B, respectively. By means of the bolts 0 0 or anyother suitable means the followers are drawn toward the flanges and theends of the flexible section D are clamped and firmly held between thefollowers and the ends of the pipes. If the flanges A and B are flushwith the ends of the pipes, as is the preferable though not necessaryconstruction, the faces of the flanges become for all practical purposesalso the ends of the pipe, and the ends of the flexible section are heldbetween the followers and the surface composed of the faces of pipe andof the flanges, which together constitute the end of the pipe. in usingthe phrase end of the rigid pipe as describing the surface against whichthe end of the flexible section is held by the followers I intend,therefore, in proper cases to include the face of the flange as well asthe face of the rigid pipe-section.

E E are two half-collars which when joined surround the coupling andwhich may have two sets of interior shoulders, as shown at e e and e a,so placed that the shoulders at of the flange A and b of the flange Bfit loosely therein. The distance between the interior shoulderscomprising each set is considerably greater than the Width of theinclosed shoulders a and Z). The half-collars E E when placed inposition surrounding the flanges A B are joined by bolts or rivetspassing through outwardly-projecting lugs E E at the ends of thehalf-collars or in other suitable manner. The collar, as shown, performsthree separate functionsprotecting the ductile section from externalinjury, holding the two rigid sections in an articulate relation, andrestricting the movement due to expansion, contraction, or deflectionwithin limits which involve no excessive or injurious strain upon theflexible section by which such movement is accommodated. The shoulders aand 7) may be omitted and the collar be made to fit directly upon theflanges A and B or upon the lugs that may take the place of the flanges,and other obvious changes and modifications may be made in the collarand the flanges without affecting the desired functions of the former.The freedom of the movement which this collar gives is much in excess ofthat needed to accommodate all movements normal to pipelines in use asconduits under or above ground.

In laying a pipe-line made flexible by the use of my coupling the cou'iling is used at such intervals as may be necessary to accommodate allthe movements due to natural or accidental causes. This may be betweenevery length or between runs of pipe composed of several lengths rigidlyunited. In either case the pipe-line is essentially a series of rigidsections connected by flexible sections in the manner hereinbeforedescribed.

It is obvious that my invention is applicable to all kinds of pipe ofwhatever material and that various subordinate changes and modificationsmay be made in my device in applying it to commercial use withoutdeparting from the spirit of my invention. In some instances it may bedesirable to place suitable gaskets or washers between the ends of thepipe and of the flexible section. If desired, the followers may beattached to and made part of the flexible and expansible section.

By using the means herein described for connecting the flexible sectionto the rigid pipes I am enabled to make as a new article of manufacturea repair-fitting having peculiar characteristics. Heretoforc when asection of pipe has broken it has been usual either to substitute anentire new section of rigid pipe, the laying of which necessitates thedigging up of at least two sections of pipe, or in an imperfect mannerto mend the broken section by inclosing it in a split sleeve. The jointsbetween such split sleeve and the broken ends of the pipe have beennecessarily makeshift and unsatisfactonv.

The accompanying drawing shows my repair-fitting containing my flexibleand expan sible joint. The short pipe A has the usual form of hub A atits extremity, and the short pipe B is similarly equipped. These shortpipes are to be connected by the flexible section, as above described,to form my repairiitting, which is applied as follows: A suitable lengthof the broken section of pipe is cut out. The hub of the section A isslipped over the end of the broken pipe and rigidly jointed thereto inthe usual manner, and the hub of the section B is similarly slipped overand secured to the other end of the. broken pipe. The flexible sectionI) and the followers are then slipped between sections A and B and aresecured thereto by the bolts c. The collars E E may then be put inplace. Thus the joints between the rcpair-1itting and the pipe-line areof the usual rigid kind and are not makeshift, only a short section ofpipe has to be exposed, and the repaired pipe is flexible and may thussuccessfully accommodate itself to a repetition of the strain whichcaused the former break.

My repair-fitting need not of course al ways have hubs on both ends,although that will be the usual form in which 1 will use it, but mayhave at its outer ends half-couplings adapted to make any usual form ofpipe-joint.

with internal shoulders engaging said flanges.

to'hold said pipe-sections in alinement and to prevent excessivelongitudinal movement of the same.

2. A fitting for pipe-lines composed of two rigid pipe-sections, theinner ends of which are flanged and the outer ends of which are providedwith half-couplings, a flexible expansible pipe-section, followers, andmeans for drawing thefollowers toward the inner ends of the rigidpipe-sections and firmly holding the ends ofthe flexible section betweenthe followers and the ends of said rigid pipesections, substantially asand for the purposes above set forth.

3. An inset-fitting for pipe-lines consisting in the pipe-line equal tothe distance between the bottom of the hubs of the assembled fittingsubstantially as and for the purpose above set forth.

4:. The combination of flanged rigid pipesections, followers, a flexiblepipe-section, means for drawing the followers towardthe pipe ends andtightly holding the ends of the flexible pipe-section between thefollowers and the ends of the rigid pipe-sections, and means for holdingthe rigid pipe-sections in approximately articulate relation and givingthem a limited freedom of movement relative to each other, substantiallyas and for the purposes above set forth.

5. The combination of flanged rigid pipesections, followers, a flexiblepipe-section, means for drawing the followers toward the pipe ends andtightly holding the ends of the flexible sections between the followersand the pipe ends, and an adjustable collar surrounding the flexiblepipe-section and the adjacent ends of the rigid pipe-sections and havinginterior ribs engaging with exterior projections on the ends of therigid pipe-sections, substantially as and for the purposes above setforth.

6. The combination of flanged rigid pipesections, followers, a flexiblepipe-section, means for drawing the followers toward the ends of therigid pipe-sections and tightly holding the ends of the flexiblepipe-section between the followers and the ends of the rigid pipe:-sections, and an adjustable collar surrounding the juxtaposed flangedends of the rigid pipe-sections and the flexible pipe-section, saidcollar having interiorlyprojecting ribs adapted to engage with exteriorprojecti ons on therigid pipe sections, and means for securing saidcollar around said rigid pipe ends, substantially as and for thepurposes herein set forth.

7. In combination with two rigid pipe-sections, joined by a flexibleexpansible pipe-section, a guard-collar having channels on its interiorsurface to engage exterior projections on the rigid pipe-sections, andmeansfor securing said guard-collar around-the ends of said rigidpipe-sections, whereby the rigid pipe-sections are held in approximatelyarticulate relation with limited freedom of longitudinal movement, andthe flexible pipe-section is protected from external injury,substantially as above set forth.

8. A collar consisting of an annular band having on its interior surfaceribsor channels adapted to engage projections on the juxtaposed ends oftwo members the ends of which are surrounded by said band and means foradjustably securing such collar around the ends of such members; wherebysaid members are held in approximately articulate relation and arepermitted limited freedom of lateral and longitudinal movement,substantially as and for the purposeslabove set forth. JAMES C. BAYLES.Witnesses:

LEWIS C. BAYLES, ALEXANDER MITCHELL.

